How the Hong Kong Festival of Arts with the Disabled in 1986 changed the life of the chairwoman of a disabled charity
- Ida Lam worked on Hong Kong’s first Festival of Arts with the Disabled, in 1986, as part of her first job when someone else dropped out
- The event made such an impression on her, she later became chairwoman of the charity Arts with the Disabled Association Hong Kong
Hong Kong Festival of Arts with the Disabled was a pioneering event, organised by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service and its constituent NGOs in 1986, showcasing the achievements of people with disabilities from both Hong Kong and overseas in a range of artistic fields, from visual art to music to dance.
Ida Lam Choi-chu, chairwoman of charity Arts with the Disabled Association Hong Kong, which was born out of the event, explains how it changed her life.
It was the first event of its kind in Hong Kong and also in Asia. I worked on it as part of my first job (with the Hong Kong Council of Social Service), because someone else left their post.
A lot of people were invited from overseas. It took place territory-wide. It was very integrated – people with disabilities and mainstream artists together. There was an exhibition that allowed visually impaired people to touch art. There were dance groups and musical groups from the US and the UK.
There was the National Theatre of the Deaf from the US, doing a mime show, which was very new to Hong Kong. There were also local artists and the City Contemporary Dance Company offering training and workshops to people with disabilities. There was a real “wow” from the community.
The background that made people come together for this was that there was a lot of discrimination at that time. There was a lot of “not in my neighbourhood” resistance to halfway houses for people with mental disabilities.